The present disclosure relates to the subject matter disclosed in German Application No. 100 48 291.0 of Sep. 29, 2000, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and for all purposes.
The invention relates to a lathe comprising a machine frame arranged on a support surface, a first working spindle which is arranged on the machine frame, is drivable for rotation about a first spindle axis and has a first workpiece receiving means, at least one first tool slide, with which a tool carrier can be displaced in an X direction transversely to the first spindle axis so that a workpiece held in the first workpiece receiving means can be machined with at least one tool held on the tool carrier, a second working spindle which is arranged on the machine frame, is drivable for rotation about a second spindle axis and has a second workpiece receiving means which faces the first workpiece receiving means, at least one second tool slide, with which a tool carrier can be displaced in an X direction transversely to the second spindle axis so that a workpiece held in the second workpiece receiving means can be machined with at least one tool held on the tool carrier.
Lathes of this type are known from the state of the art as so-called counterspindle machines.
The problem with such counterspindle machines is to be seen in the fact that when as large a number of tools as possible is intended to be available for machining, in particular, as large a number of tools as possible is intended to be brought into engagement for the machining at the same time, these machines are of a very large construction.
The object underlying the invention is therefore to improve a lathe of the generic type in such a manner that this is of as compact a construction as possible.
This object is accomplished in accordance with the invention, in a lathe of the type described at the outset, in that the machine frame has a machine base member elongated in a longitudinal direction, that the machine base member has a first support section and a second support section arranged to follow this in the longitudinal direction, that each of the support sections has a base side, a spindle support side located opposite this in a first transverse direction in relation to the longitudinal direction and two slide support sides located opposite one another in a second transverse direction in relation to the longitudinal direction and between the base side and the spindle support side, that the first working spindle is arranged on the spindle support side of the first support section and the second working spindle is arranged on the spindle support side of the second support section and that the first tool slide is held on one of the slide support sides of the first support section and the second tool slide is held on one of the slide support sides of the second support section.
The advantage of the inventive solution is to be seen in the fact that with the use of such a machine base member a particularly space-saving type of construction of the inventive lathe has been developed.
Furthermore, such a machine base member has the advantage that with such an arrangement of working spindle and tool slide as well as tool carrier relative to one another this machine base member has a negative influence on the exactness of the rotary machining only to a slight degree with the heat expansion inherent in it since the heat expansion of the machine base member is slight in the transverse directions which are decisive for the exactness of the rotary machining and the expansion of the machine base member in the longitudinal direction is insignificant for the exactness of the respective rotary machining.
In this respect, a particularly favorable solution provides for the support sections to have essentially the same cross section so that the heat expansion in both support sections has the same effect and thus the relative exactness during the machining of the front and rear sides is very high since the heat expansion affects the exactness of the rotary machining in the same way in both support sections.
The machine base member could, in principle, be realized in the most varied of ways; for example, it is possible to construct the machine base member in a special profiled shape, for example, in a double T profile or in similar profiled shapes. A particularly favorable solution provides for the machine base member to extend like a beam in the longitudinal direction, wherein the beam-like shape is to be understood, in particular, such that the machine base member is designed on the basis of the beam-like basic shape.
With respect to the subdivision of the machine base member, it has merely been mentioned so far that this is intended to have two support sections.
In principle, it is possible to design the machine base member such that the support sections merge into one another.
A particularly favorable solution does, however, provide for a connecting section to be provided between the support sections.
Such a connecting section can, in the inventive solution, have essentially the same cross-sectional shape as the support sections.
It is, however, also possible when providing such a connecting section for this to have a cross-sectional shape different from the support sections.
Even when a connecting section is provided, the machine base member does, however, preferably form an integral part with the support sections and the connecting section.
With respect to the movability of the working spindles, no further details have so far been given in conjunction with the explanations concerning the individual embodiments. One advantageous embodiment, for example, provides for at least one of the support sections to have, on its spindle support side, guides means for a working spindle which is displaceable in Z direction parallel to the spindle axis, these guide means being located in a spindle guide plane, so that at least one of the working spindles can be moved in Z direction.
In this respect, the guide means are preferably located in a spindle guide plane extending parallel to the longitudinal direction.
In principle, it would be conceivable to mount the tool slides securely on the respective slide support sides of the machine base member.
However, since movability of the tools relative to the working spindle is necessary in any case, it is preferably provided for at least one of the tool slides to be guided so as to be movable on the machine base member with slide guide means located in a slide guide plane.
In this respect, the slide guide means preferably extend in slide guide planes extending parallel to the longitudinal direction.
With respect to the arrangement of the slide support sides relative to the spindle guide plane, it is particularly advantageous for reasons of space, especially to accommodate the tool slides in a space-saving manner, when the slide support sides of the machine base member are located on the same side of the spindle guide plane.
A particularly favorable geometry is present when the slide guide plane extends transversely to the spindle guide plane. It is even more favorable when the slide guide planes located opposite one another extend transversely to the spindle guide plane.
Such an extension of the slide guide plane transversely to the spindle guide plane includes all angles between these planes which are greater than 0xc2x0. The slide guide planes preferably extend at least at an angle of 45xc2x0 to the spindle guide plane.
It is even better when the angle between the slide guide planes and the spindle guide plane is close to a right angle. A particularly expedient solution provides for the slide guide planes to extend approximately at right angles to the spindle guide plane.
In order to obtain as space-saving a construction of the inventive lathe as possible, it is particularly favorable for the machining of the respective workpiece when the corresponding tool slide and the corresponding working spindle are arranged on the same side of the respective tool located in working position in relation to this workpiece.
The compact mode of construction is benefited further when all the tool slides which can be used for the machining of the workpiece held in one of the workpiece receiving means are arranged, when seen in longitudinal direction of the machine base member, essentially on the same side of the tools borne by them and able to be brought into working position.
Furthermore, the compact mode of construction is benefited, in addition, when the tool slides associated with the respective support section are arranged on a side of the tools borne by them which faces away from the respectively other support section.
With respect to the number of tool slides, no further details have been given in conjunction with the preceding explanations concerning the individual embodiments. In principle, it is sufficient to associate one tool slide with each working spindle in order to be able to machine a workpiece with each of the working spindles at the same time and independently of one another.
However, a particularly favorable solution provides for two tool slides to be associated with at least one support section, these tool slides offering the possibility of machining at one working spindle with two tools which are in engagement.
With respect to the arrangement of the tool slides relative to the respective support section, it is particularly favorable when the tool slides on at least one of the support sections are designed to be in mirror symmetry to a mirror plane. This solution has the great advantage that with it the production of the tool slides is very simple since a large proportion of identical parts or parts which merely have to be produced in mirror image can be used on account of the mirror symmetry.
It is even more advantageous for reasons of cost when a tool slide of the one support section is of an identical design to a tool slide of the other support section since, as a result, the number of identical parts can be increased even further and thus the costs reduced even further.
A particularly inexpensive solution with respect to the construction of the tool slides provides, in the case of two tool slides respectively associated with each working spindle, for two tool slides to be of an identical design and for the other two tool slides to likewise be identical to one another but designed so as to be in mirror symmetry to the other tool slides so that the optimum number of identical parts or parts merely different due to mirror symmetry can be achieved and thus a high reduction in costs occurs during the production of the inventive machine tool.
It is particularly favorable when the tool slides designed to be identical to one another are arranged on different slide support sides of the machine base member in order to be able to utilize the advantages of the alignment of the tool slides relative to the tools with respect to a compact construction of the inventive lathe.
With respect to the movability of the tool slides, no further details have been given in conjunction with the preceding explanations concerning the individual embodiments. One advantageous embodiment, for example, provides for at least one of the two tool slides associated with one of the working spindles to have a slide member movable in Z direction. This solution has the advantage that, as a result, the possibility of machining with two tools engaging on one workpiece at the same time is improved further since, for example, in the case of a relative movement in Z direction between tool and working spindle which is required for the machining with one tool a second movability in Z direction is present, in addition, due to the slide member of the other tool slide which is movable in Z direction and so both tools can be used with different relative movements in Z direction.
With respect to the arrangement of the slide guide means in longitudinal direction of the machine base member, the most varied of possibilities are conceivable. A particularly favorable solution provides for the slide guide means for the at least one tool slide to be respectively provided in the area of the support sections on the slide support sides.
It is particularly favorable when the slide guide means are arranged outside a longitudinal section of the machine base member, in which a working space is located, in which machining of the workpieces held in the two working spindles takes place.
With respect to the movement of the tool slides relative to the machine base member in the area of the slide support sides, no further details have been given in conjunction with the preceding explanations of the individual embodiments. One advantageous embodiment, for example, provides for the tool slides to be guided on the slide support sides of the machine base member so as to be movable in Z direction.
This solution has the great advantage that a very stable guidance of the tool slides relative to the machine base member can be realized, in particular, when large movements in Z direction are intended to take place.
This may be realized in a particularly favorable manner in that Z guide means for the movable guidance of the respective tool slide are provided on at least one slide support side.
Since Z guide means are generally provided on both support sections, the Z guide means are preferably arranged such that the Z guide means of the one slide support side of one support section are aligned with Z guide means of the same slide support side of the other support section.
It is particularly favorable when the Z guide means of the slide support sides of both support sections merge into one another so that, in principle, it is possible to have the tool slides traveling from one support section to the other.
In this respect, it would, for example, be possible to associate a tool slide not only with one working spindle but also with the other working spindle for the machining of the workpiece so that the flexibility can be increased during use of such a lathe for workpieces of different types.
Even when a connecting section is provided between the support sections, one advantageous embodiment provides for the Z guide means to extend beyond the connecting section and thus to extend continuously from the one support section to the other support section.
Alternatively to the solution, with which the movability in Z direction takes place between the machine base member and the tool slide held thereon, a different solution provides for at least one of the tool slides to comprise a Y slide member which is guided on the slide support side of the machine base member so as to be movable in Y direction.
This solution has the advantage that with it the Y axis, which is the axis used the least dynamically, is seated as close as possible to the machine base member and the X axis and, where applicable, also a Z axis, which are intended to be drivable with dynamics which are as great as possible, are integrated into the tool slide and the axes, which are intended to be driven with great dynamics, have masses which are as low as possible and thus a mass inertia which is as low as possible.
In this respect, it is preferably provided for Y guide means for the movable guidance of the respective tool slide to be provided on at least one slide support side.
It is particularly favorable with this design of the tool slide when at least one of the tool slides comprises a Z slide member which is movable in Z direction in relation to the Y slide member guided on the slide support side so that a movement in Z direction can also be realized but this movability is realized by the tool slide itself and so only slight masses still have to be moved by the Z axis drivable with dynamics which are as great as possible.
In order to likewise have as little moved mass as possible in the X axis used mainly for a rotary machining, it is preferably provided for each tool slide to comprise an X slide member which is guided for movement in X direction in relation to a slide member guided on the slide support side.
In conjunction with the preceding explanations concerning the individual embodiments it has merely been described how as space-saving a construction of the lathe as possible can be achieved by way of favorable arrangement of the tool slides.
In order to continue this procedure in a consistent manner, it is advantageously provided, for the machining of the respective workpiece, for the corresponding tool carrier and the corresponding workpiece receiving means, when seen in longitudinal direction of the machine base member, to be arranged essentially on the same side of the respective tool located in working position in relation to this workpiece.
Furthermore, it is favorable for a compact mode of construction when all the tool carriers which can be used for the machining of the workpiece held in one of the workpiece receiving means are, when seen in longitudinal direction of the machine base member, arranged essentially on the same side of the tools which can be brought into working position.
Furthermore, the compactness of the construction may also be advantageously achieved due to the fact that the tool carriers associated with the respective support section extend essentially in the direction of a side of the respective tools borne by it which faces away from the respectively other support section.
With respect to the number of tool carriers it is favorable, when as large a number of tools as possible is intended to engage on the workpiece, when two tool carriers are associated with at least one of the working spindles.
In order to obtain as large a number of identical parts as possible, the tool carriers are preferably designed such that they are constructed on a least one of the carrier sections so as to be in mirror symmetry to a mirror plane.
Such a mirror symmetrical construction of the tool carriers already allows the use of a large number of identical parts, in particular in the case of the rotary parts, and the parts to be designed in mirror symmetry can also be produced simply and inexpensively from a technical point of view.
The number of identical parts may be kept particularly high when a tool carrier of one support section is of an identical design to the tool carrier of the other support section since, as a result, the identical parts are used for the two tool carriers and thus a considerable reduction in costs is possible.
In order to combine the advantages of an inexpensive construction with as space-saving a construction as possible, it is preferably provided for the tool carriers which are of an identical design to one another to be arranged on different slide support sides of the machine base member.
In the case of a lathe with two working spindles and two tool carriers respectively associated with each working spindle, in particular, a particularly favorable solution provides for altogether two tool carriers to be of an identical design and for the other two tool carriers to be in mirror symmetry to them so that the number of identical parts is maximized.
With respect to the design of the tool carriers themselves, no further details have so far been given.
It is, for example, conceivable to provide a tool carrier which bears a single tool.
It is particularly favorable in order to keep the number of usable tools as high as possible when the tool carriers are designed as multiple tool carriers.
Such a multiple tool carrier could, for example, be a linear tool carrier.
Another solution provides for a double linear tool carrier pivotable, in addition, about an axis to be provided as multiple tool carrier.
A particularly favorable solution provides, however, for at least one of the tool carriers to be designed as a tool turret.
Such a design of a tool turret creates the possibility of making a large number of tools available for use.
In order to keep such a tool turret as slight as possible with respect to its radial extension and thus be able to position a turret housing as close as possible to the spindle during the machining of the workpiece, it is preferably provided for the turret to have a turret axis extending at an angle of less than 45xc2x0 to the respective spindle axis.
One possibility for realizing this would be for the turret axis to extend essentially parallel to the spindle axis.
This solution does, however, make it necessary, in particular, in the case of driven tools to separate the drive for the tools and the drive for the indexing of the turret for reasons of space when the diameter of the turret head is intended to be kept as small as possible and thus the turret axis is intended to be positioned as close as possible to the working spindle during the machining of the workpiece.
A particularly favorable solution provides, in this respect, for the turret axis to extend in an angular range of approximately 10xc2x0 to approximately 30xc2x0 in relation to the respective spindle axis so that it is possible on account of the inclined extension of the turret axis in relation to the spindle axis to provide the drive for driven tools and for the indexing of the turret coaxially to the turret axis.
In principle, it is conceivable within the scope of the inventive solution to arrange only tool carriers on the tool slides.
It is, however, also conceivable to provide on the tool slides auxiliary devices which are likewise considered within the scope of the present invention to be tools in the broadest sense.
One advantageous embodiment of an inventive lathe therefore provides for one of the tool slides to bear an element carrier for elements usable on the workpiece which creates the possibility of acting on one of the workpieces, in addition, during the machining.
The most varied of possibilities are conceivable as elements of the element carrier. For example, elements of the element carrier can be workpiece clamping elements or workpiece holding elements.
One particularly advantageous embodiment provides for the element carrier to bear a workpiece support element as element, with which an additional support of the respective workpiece during the machining is, for example, possible in order to either be able to machine more precisely or to be able to work with greater cutting forces.
In the simplest case, the workpiece support element is a center for supporting the workpiece; it is, however, also conceivable to provide any type of workpiece receiving means for supporting the workpiece instead of the center.
Alternatively or in addition to the provision of a workpiece support element it is preferably provided for the element carrier to bear a tool as element so that additional machinings are, for example, possible.
One advantageous embodiment provides for the element carrier to have not only workpiece clamping elements and/or workpiece guide elements and/or workpiece support elements but also tools and for different elements to be brought into use on the workpiece due to suitable movement of the element carrier relative to the workpiece.
In this respect, the most varied of solutions are conceivable in order to arrange the elements in a suitable manner.
It is particularly favorable when the elements are located with their central axes in a plane, preferably at a distance from one another, so that by arranging the plane such that this extends through the respective spindle axis of the workpiece the most varied of elements can be brought into use.
A solution which is particularly favorable for reasons of collision provides for the plane to extend parallel to the Y axis so that by displacing the element carrier in the direction of the Y axis the most varied of elements, i.e. workpiece clamping elements or workpiece guide elements or workpiece support elements or tools, can be positioned such that action on the workpiece can be realized with one of them.
It is particularly favorable when the element carrier has receiving means for the workpiece accommodated in the first workpiece receiving means and the second workpiece receiving means and thus the two workpieces can be supported at the same time by the element carrier.
In order to be able to machine a workpiece on both sides with the inventive machine tool as efficiently as possible, it is advantageously provided for at least one of the working spindles to be displaceable in Z direction to such an extent in the direction of the other working spindle that the workpiece can be transferred from one workpiece receiving means to the other workpiece receiving means.
With respect to the arrangement of the guide means for the working spindle displaceable in Z direction, it is preferably provided for these to each be arranged in the area of the support sections and, nevertheless, for the working spindle to be movable as far as the other working spindle to take over the workpiece.
In this respect it is particularly favorable when the guide means are arranged outside a longitudinal section of the machine base member, in which a working space is located, so that there is no necessity to guide these guide means through the working space.
In conjunction with the preceding explanations concerning the individual embodiments no further details have been given concerning the type of machining of the workpieces.
A customary machining of a workpiece which is held in a workpiece receiving means of the working spindle has merely be presupposed.
The inventive solution may, however, also be used particularly advantageously when a guiding device for longitudinal turning is associated with one of the working spindles so that the inventive lathe can operate as a special long-turning lathe.
In this respect, the working spindle can preferably be moved in Z direction relative to the guiding device in order to guide the workpiece through the guiding device, wherein machining takes place each time close to the guiding device by means of the tools held by the tool carriers.
In this respect, it is particularly favorable when the working spindle is guided on Z guide means arranged on the spindle support side of the support section.
In principle, it would be conceivable to configure the guiding device so as to also be movable in Z direction. For reasons of the simplicity of the construction and the precision of the machining it is, however, favorable when the guiding device is held stationary on the support section.
With respect to the movability of the other oppositely located working spindle, no particular details have been given in this respect. However, in order to likewise be able to provide for a transfer of the workpiece for machining on the second side, the oppositely located working spindle is preferably movable in Z direction relative to the support section and, in particular, displaceable to such an extent that its workpiece receiving means reaches the guiding device.
Additional features and advantages of the inventive solution are the subject matter of the following description as well as the drawings illustrating several embodiments.